[geeks] air traffic control (forwarded) (fwd)

[Peter L. Wargo]

Too damn funny not to pass on...

-Pete

-----
Peter L. Wargo
pwargo at basenji.com
Owner/operator of basenji.com.

---------- Forwarded message ----------
Date: Wed, 25 Jul 2001 09:50:53 -0400
From: Dick Joltes <djoltes at attglobal.net>
Reply-To: loonies at basenji.com
To: loonies at basenji.com
Subject: LOONIES: air traffic control (forwarded)

Who says pilots and controllers have no sense of humor?

Following are accounts of actual exchanges between airline and control
towers from around the world:

During taxi, the crew of a US Air departure flight to Ft. Lauderdale
made a wrong turn and came nose to nose with a United 727.

The irate ground controller (a female) lashed out at the US Air crew
screaming "US Air 2771, where are you going? I told you to turn right on
Charlie taxi way; you turned right on Delta.  Stop right there. I know
it's difficult to tell the difference between C's and D's but get it
right". Continuing her lashing to the embarrassed crew, she was now 
shouting hysterically, "God, you've screwed everything up; it'll take 
forever to sort this out. You stay right there and don't move until I 
tell you to. You can expect progressive taxi instructions in about a 
half hour and I want you to go exactly where I tell you, when I tell 
you, and how I tell you. You got that, USAir 2771???

The humbled crew responded: "Yes Ma'am".

Naturally, the ground control frequency went terribly silent after
the verbal bashing of US Air Flight 2771. No one wanted to engage the
irate ground controller in her current state. Tension in every cockpit 
at LGA was running high.  Shortly after the controller finished her 
admonishment of the U.S. Air crew, an unknown male pilot broke the 
silence and asked:  Wasn't I married to you once?"
 __________________________

A DC-10 had an exceedingly long roll out after landing with his approach
speed just a little too high.

San Jose Tower: "American 751 heavy, turn right at the end, if able.
If not able, take the Guadeloupe exit off of Highway 101 and make a 
right at the light to return to the airport."
 ________________________________________________

It was a really nice day, right about dusk, and a Piper Malibu was
being vectored into a long line of airliners in order to land at Kansas
City. 

KC Approach: "Malibu three two-Charlie, you're following a 727, one
o'clock and three miles."

Three-two-Charlie: "We've got him. We'll follow him."

KC Approach: "Delta 105, your traffic to follow is a Malibu, eleven
o'clock and three miles. Do you have that traffic?"

Delta 105 (long pause and then in a thick southern drawl):
"Well...I've got something down there. Can't quite tell if it's a 
Malibu or a Chevelle, though."
  _______________________________________________

Unknown Aircraft: "I'm f...ing bored!"

Air Traffic Control: "Last aircraft transmitting, identify yourself
immediately!!"

Unknown Aircraft: "I said I was f...ing bored, not f...ing stupid!"
  _______________________________________________

Tower: "Eastern 702, cleared for takeoff, contact Departure on 124.7."
Eastern 702: "Tower, Eastern 702 switching to Departure . . . by the
way, after we lifted off, we saw some kind of dead animal on the far 
end of the runway."

Tower: "Continental 635, cleared for takeoff, contact Departure on 
124.7; did you copy the report from Eastern?"

Continental 635: "Continental 635, cleared for takeoff roger; and yes,
we copied Eastern and we've already notified our caterers."
 __________________________________________

O'Hare Approach Control: "United 329 Heavy, your traffic is a Fokker,
one o'clock, 3 miles, eastbound."

United 329: "Approach, I've always wanted to say this . . . I've got
that Fokker in sight."
  ______________________________________________

The German air controllers at Frankfurt Airport are a short-tempered
lot.
They not only expect one to know one's gate parking location but how
to get there without any assistance from them. So it was with some 
amusement that we (a PanAm 747) listened to the following exchange 
between Frankfurt ground control and a British Airways 747 (call sign 
"Speedbird 206") after landing:

Speedbird 206: "Top of the morning Frankfurt, Speedbird 206 clear of
the active runway."

Ground: "Guten morgen! You vill taxi to your gate!"

The big British Airways 747 pulled onto the main taxi way and slowed
to a stop.

Ground: "Speedbird, do you not know vare you are going?"

Speedbird 206: "Stand by a moment ground, I'm looking up our gate
location now."

Ground (with some arrogant impatience): "Speedbird 206, haff you
never flown to Frankfurt before?"

Speedbird 206 (cooly): "Yes, I have, in 1944. In another type of
Boeing, but just to drop something off, I didn't stop."
  ______________________________________________

I was a Pan Am 727 Flight Engineer waiting for start clearance in
Munich, Germany. I was listening to the radio since I was the junior 
crew member. This was the conversation I overheard:

Lufthansa: (In German) "Ground, what is our start clearance time?"

Ground: (In English) "If you want an answer you must speak English."  

Luft: (In English) "I am a German, flying a German airplane, in
Germany. Why must I speak English?"

Before ground could answer someone replied in a beautiful British
accent: "Because you lost the bloody war."
_______________________________________________
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